I met with a treasured friend last night and discussed freedom in Christ. It’s simple enough: Jesus died to give us freedom. “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free.”Of course we’re free.
It’s easy for us to understand. We were born into freedom. We’ve been able to do what we please with more freedom than others will ever see.
For us, freedom is being able to do as we please. It’s being able to dream about what kind of people we want to be. It’s being allowed to decide for ourselves what we can do this day and the next and everyday after.
But that’s not real freedom. That’s just freedom of choice. The freedom of Christ is much richer, much deeper than that.
This past fall I learned a lot about God and His character. How He works within us. One thing that shattered my preconceived ideas about Him was this:
All the dreams we have, the things we ache to do one day, the talents and passions we have? They all come from Him. The dreams we hope to achieve some day are most often not things we just come up with in our own heads. They’re from a God who intricately created us.
That’s the way God is. He is mysterious in a multitude of ways, but He is also willing to letting us in on what He wants to accomplish. He constantly does that in the Bible; before He does something, He often tells His people what He’s going to do and how He wants His people to join in.
If this is our God, if our God is the creator of dreams, our passions, and our talents, think of how limitless He is. We often dream of doing something we deem impossible because it seems so. But, what if those things are the things He wants to do? And what if we let Him?
In my own life, that’s what freedom has been like.
It feels difficult to fully explain, because freedom in God is like nothing else. It’s like jumping off of the highest cliff and falling softly through the air. Terrifying and beautiful.
Knowing that I am saved, protected by His grace and promise, that His mercy and love are continuously flowing through me, I should walk more freely. It should be in my footsteps. It should be in my mind. It should be in the works of my hands, the words of my mouth, the prayers of my soul.
I also think being free can be uniquely personal to each of us.
For me, it’s being able to believe that I can do things I should be unqualified to do. It’s being able to wear something because I love the way I feel in it, not because of what I hope someone else thinks of it. Freedom is being able to nourish my body with healthy food and also enjoy food that gives me serious joy. Freedom is being able to speak truth to people I love, even if I’m not certain of how they will respond. Freedom is not being afraid of what people think of me, rather, it’s being sure of who God says I am.
Freedom is being sure of what Christ has done, never what I can do despite Him.
So, how does this translate to you? This is me. I don’t think you can expect freedom to look identical to this.
I do think that freedom can be found. It’s found in the pages of His Word to us. It’s found in our prayers. It’s found in the quiet. It’s found when our life is pure chaos. Freedom is available to you, wherever you may be.
It already resides within you.
The Holy Spirit is upon you, and you have straight access to a holy God. You have freedom, for it is for freedom that Christ has set you free.
JANELLE DELAGRANGE 